PHILADELPHIA—Dance studio owner Kate Shier watched Shen Yun Performing Arts with six family members on March 3, and was mesmerized by the level of skill displayed by the dancers.
Storytelling Through Dance
Shier owns Feet First Dance Studio in Phoenixville, Philadelphia, and has been dancing for 15 years. Her partner, who has been dancing his whole life, is the studio’s artistic director. Shier is also an accountant and costume designer.The way Shen Yun tells stories from China’s 5,000 years of civilization through classical Chinese dance particularly resonated with Shier, whose studio recitals also feature dance-based storytelling.
The costumes and their special place in the choreography also stood out to Shier.
“They were such a part of the choreography. I found that fascinating and lovely.”
Shier applauded Shen Yun’s efforts to bring classical Chinese dance to audiences around the world, adding that she wanted to bring her dance students to experience the performance next year.Reviving Traditional Culture
“Our roots are important to us as human beings in a society, it allows us to reflect and it allows us to learn,” Rovito said.
“Wiping out a past is never never beneficial for anyone; you can’t restart history.”
Rovito said the spiritual theme flowing though the programs struck him.“You could see it, you could understand it, and it was very hopeful,” he said.
Chinese people for thousands of years have believed in the divine, as embodied in the teachings of Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism. These beliefs spawned values and morals that guided Chinese people’s ways of thinking and conduct for millennia. Such values included righteousness, benevolence, loyalty, and truthfulness, and continued to underpin Chinese culture up until the communist regime took power in the mid-20th century.“You just have to go see it,” he said.
“It makes you feel hopeful that [a group] like Shen Yun ... is rekindling and remaking that, bringing that back.”
With reporting by Lily Sun and Janita Kan.